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Earth-84
'Earth 84 '''is a reality in the multiverse. It is a somewhat bleaker world, being one where the United States has devolved into a Communist Dictatorship and the country is ravaged by far-left fascist tyranny on one side, and acts of terrorism from far-right extremists on the other. History It is not known when exactly Earth-84's United States became what it is in the present, but it is believed to have occurred some time after the Presidential Election of 2016 and the negative consequences of that election. As polarization continued to damage the country, the political factions became more and more radical, until at some unknown point the old government was abandoned in favor of a new one; a dictatorship modeled after the ones of the Soviet Union and Maoist China. Though at first the slow shedding of freedoms was seen as necessary in the face of so much social upheaval and a justified countermeasure to the reactionary attitudes that had overtaken the country, eventually nearly all freedoms were abandoned and common sense along with it. For their part, the rest of the world severed ties with the United States, leaving it to suffer the consequences of it's bad choices alone. Setting By the year 2084, the United States is a communist dictatorship in the vein of Lenin and Stalin's Russias, and Mao Zedong's China. All three dictators are widely idolized by the reigning government, which is known as the Identity Politic, and held up as role-models. Their tyrannical, intolerant systems of government are seen as what every "good" society ought to be. The Identity Politic is thusly Far-Left, Communist, Anti-Religious/violently secular, Anti-Capitalist, and fiercely opposed to any alternate or contrary opinions or points of view. Under the Identity Politic, Capitalism has been abandoned as an economic system, but as a consequence of this and the country's state of relative isolation, it is racked with poverty, and is also widely corrupt and crumbling. Any form of religion, especially Christianity and Judaism, are fiercely outlawed, and all churches and synagogues have either been shut down, abandoned, or destroyed. Prayers are forbidden and are grounds for arrest if one is caught engaging in them, as is expressing faith in God, capitalist ideas, or any other criticism of the government or contrasting opinion. Yet more things are forbidden to be spoken on the grounds that they are "micro-aggressions", and in some instances, the populace is forbidden from speaking at all based on the belief that literally ''everything ''is a micro-aggression and therefore nothing can be said. In addition, the government censors everything; virtually all fiction, art, literature, video games, and films from before the Identity Politic rose to power are banned, censored, and targeted for destruction on the grounds that they are either "offensive" or potentially so. Book burnings in the vein of what the Nazi Party did are common. Anything that depicts women in an even remotely sexualized manner are especially taboo, and anyone found in possession of images or video depicting women even so much as wearing sexy or revealing attire are immediately arrested and the offending materials destroyed. This anti-sexual attitude also extends to how women are expected to behave in the society; women are forbidden from wearing anything revealing, tight-fitting, or otherwise sexually stimulating, nor are they allowed to engage in flirting, seduction, or pre-marital sex. The rigid standards for women also extend to their being expected to get jobs outside of the household, with women who want to be stay-at-home domestics looked down upon as cowards and weaklings. Similarly, women who actually love men and want to be in a romantic relationship because they seek true love, rather than marrying them for purely pragmatic reasons are also looked at as weak and degrading themselves. Women are expected to be haughty towards men and always convey a sense of arrogant superiority and disdain, and can be shamed for failing to do so. Women seeking help or assistance from men in any way (and any fictional works showing the same), are seen as taboo. Although at least ostensibly egalitarian in respects to differences in race, sexual orientation, and so on, the Identity Politic actually encourages division among different groups, insisting that no one can ever truly understand anyone else if their skin tone is different, and so everyone should stay within their own spheres. Moving out of one's sphere and trying to act as though they are the same as those of a different background, are ridiculed at best. Also, some degree of Anti-Semitism is present in the culture as well, including in how the government has as part of its education a relentlessly anti-Israel curriculum that demonizes the country and likens it to the Third Reich, while any who dare to defend Israel or speak out against the unfair treatment are at best publicly discredited and at worst imprisoned for "sedition". Finally, the overwhelming majority of the Identity Politic's members and enforcers are themselves white, and so opportunities for the underprivileged are little better than they were decades ago. Sadly, the primary resistance to the Identity Politic are no better, being a deplorable bunch ranging from Neo-Nazis, white supremacist rednecks and nativists, straight up nihilists who believe they can hate whoever they want and say whatever they want, and other such unsavory characters. They make regular attacks against the government and civilian populace (often killing members of the latter), but the government in turn cracks down on them and anyone believed to be helping them with extreme prejudice, and then use their actions as a justification for maintaining their control. In fairness, these far-right groups ''are ''legitimately destructive and abhorrent, often committing hate crimes against minority groups and advocating for genocide (even though most people in the Identity Politic government who they despise are, as already said, white), and it was the rise of a far-right authoritarian in the past that led to the Identity Politic's taking over the country in the first place. But for those bigots looking for an excuse to hurt minorities, none of that matters. It is the sad irony of the conflict that minorities suffer for the actions of a predominantly white government. Although most hate the Identity Politic, they nevertheless do their best to endure it, if only because the alternative offered by the reactionary resistance is rightly recognized as being no better and potentially even worse. "Better censored and shamed than lynched or shot" is a common line reflecting this sentiment. In all, it is a bleak picture, and most Americans who did not want to side with either ugly extreme long ago fled the country for Canada, Europe, or elsewhere. Unfortunately, not all can do this, and many remain trapped in a hellish state between the fascists and the anarchists; between the sanctimonious and the nihilistic. But all hope is not lost; spread throughout the country are a select few individuals of extraordinary abilities. "Superheroes" they'd be called in another, better world. And they know they likely can't save the United States from the hell it's become. But they can at least get some of the remaining moderates out of the country to some place better as the Identity Politic and the hate mongers tear each other apart. And that's just what they plan to do, if they can. Inhabitants of Note * '''Lux Veritas (James Harper): '''James Harper began as a worker for the Identity Politic's censorship office, where he worked as an office drone. However, years of exposure to the beautiful, poignant, fascinating, and stimulating works of fiction he was being ordered to censor or destroy imbued James with an appreciation for these things. Secretly hiding as much as he could, he began to read, and to watch, and to learn. Realizing that the world hadn't always been as it was now, and that it didn't have to remain so, James grew increasingly discontent with his status as a cog in an ugly machine. When he dared to disagree with his boss one day, arguing that he ''did ''have the right to say if something wasn't sexist or racist if the reasons for it being so were absurd or nonexistent, he was immediately branded a traitor and declared guilty of sedition and insubordination. Running off rather than let himself be "reeducated", James took his collection of books and other treasures from the past with him, and disappeared. A few years later, a masked man began targeting Identity Politic buildings, facilities, and prominent figures in the government, and soon made a name for himself as a tireless enemy of the Identity Politic and all it stood for. Branded a terrorist by the government-controlled media, the masked man, known as "Lux Veritas", which literally means "Light and Truth", has captured the hearts and minds of many who suffer under the government, offering them words of wisdom and encouragement and urging them to resist and fight back against the tyranny. However, he is no friend of the reactionary factions either, often hijacking their broadcasts to mercilessly discredit and factcheck their bigoted propaganda. He is eloquent, intelligent, and always one step ahead of the Identity Politic's forces. Within his lairs are troves of art of all types from before the fall of the USA's democratic government, and he cherishes them all. They represent a very flawed, but still better era, when censors did not destroy everything they touched, and when fascist thought and culture policing did not reign supreme over the masses. Or, as he puts it: "Introduce a little...rationality. Upset the established nonsense, and everything becomes...''logic. ''I'm an Agent of Logic." * '''Avenging Preacher (Solomon Breckenridge): '''A preacher in a predominantly African American community, Solomon Breckenridge believed in the power of faith to unite people and bring them together in feelings of love, charity, and goodwill. A religious and caring man, Solomon preached tolerance and kindness, only to see his words fall on deaf ears when the Identity Politic rose to power. Declaring all religion, and especially his, to be enemies of the state, they destroyed his church and took most of his congregation away to be "reeducated". Dismayed and sinking into despair, Solomon wondered if perhaps God hadn't forsaken mankind after all. But then he decided that, whether God had abandoned man or not, he would not. ''He would not just lie down and die. No, he decided that he would do something about it instead. And so, as the Avenging Preacher, he will strike down upon them, the Identity Politic and the White Supremacists alike, with great vengeance, and furious anger. Those who have kept, to poison and destroy his brothers, they will know his name is the Lord...when he lays his vengeance upon them. * 'Guardian Devil (David Vaughn): '''Living in a community overflowing with rednecks, skinheads, and other such racist malcontents, David Vaughn and his neighbors found no solace in the "protection" of the Identity Politic's fascist police force, who were often little better when it came to how much they oppressed people. Regularly having his voice dismissed simply because of his gender and his skin tone, David was threatened with violence by bigots on one side for defending minorities in his community, and sneered at by the Identity Politic's police on the other for trying to be a "white savior". When his wife was falsely accused of having worn revealing clothing, David was unable to speak in her defense on the grounds that anything he said were "microaggressions", and also because men were not allowed to refute accusations made by women no matter how absurd. Watching as his wife was sent away to be publicly punished and then reeducated, David decided he could take no more. Further honing his martial arts skills that he had acquired to protect himself and those in his community, and training his mind and body to be stronger than ever, David next got body armor and spray-painted it red. With a devil motif running through his suit, and bitterness filling his heart, David has decided that his friends and neighbors don't need a guardian angel anymore; now they need a guardian ''devil. * 'Siren, Succubus, and Sorceress (Isabella Alvarez, Jennifer Gershon, and Amy MacTaggart): '''A trio of women who strike back against the hypocritical and suffocating norms and expectations of the Identity Politic's society. Dressed in deliberately provocative and aggressively sexualized outfits of tight-fitting, low-cut catsuits, high heeled boots, and with cosmetics to spare, the trio bids defiance to the Identity Politic's blanket ban on women beautifying themselves or daring to be sexy in any way, shape, or form. Highly skilled martial artists and markswomen, and experts with a variety of melee weapons as well, they fight to both protect women in their communities from sexual predators and thugs (of which there are sadly a great many), but also to fight back against the Identity Politic that demands all women be, think, look, and act the same while hypocritically railing against art and fiction against women that had ''more ''variety in how women were portrayed. In defiance of the Identity Politic's given stance that all women must be conservatively dressed, hyper-masculine warriors, fighters, and amazons who never show any weakness, flaw, femininity, vulnerability, or above all, love for men on the grounds that it degrades them, the trio instead embrace the idea of the flawed woman; a woman who is allowed to be imperfect or something other than a warrior if that is her earnest choice and desire. Although warriors themselves, they tolerate and appreciate women who think differently, and do not truck with the Identity Politic's more rigid views. Although deeply despised by the Identity Politic to the point of having shoot to kill orders against them, the three are beloved by many women in the society who chafe under the Identity Politic's ridiculously rigid and nonsensical guidelines and standards for how women ought to be, and they have gathered to them a large number of followers known collectively as "The Sisterhood of Change". * '''Kochav (Joshua Bernstein): '''Once a distinguished and successful College professor who encouraged differences of opinion rather than thought-policing, Joshua Bernstein was also a staunch defender of Israel, stressing repeatedly the country's right to exist and how it really wasn't as bad as so many said. Flawed yes, and occasionally cruel. But no more worthy of ceaseless scorn than the USA, which was also flawed and had repeatedly done cruel things throughout its history. Unfortunately, this pro-Israel stance, plus his being highly critical of the Identity Politic's authoritarianism and parallels to the dictatorships of Lenin, Stalin, and Mao, made him an enemy of the new regime. Declaring Bernstein to be a traitor guilty of spreading seditious thoughts and ideas and encouraging "microaggressions", the Identity Politic had him publicly discredited, stripped him of his academic license and tenure, and cast him out of his university, which was shortly thereafter converted into a reeducation center for the new regime. Disappearing of the radar after this, Joshua Bernstein later re-emerged as the masked man "Kochav". Wearing the Star of David and the colors of Israel (explicitly forbidden under the new regime), Kochav has hijacked Identity Politic broadcasts to spread his own message for critical thinking, democracy, and rational moderation in defiance of both the fascist tyranny employed by the Identity Politic, and the very sorts of reactionary, nativist attitudes that led to their rise in the first place, in particular blasting the reactionary broadcasts that spread Anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. He also secretly helps smuggle people out of the country, focusing on getting Jewish people to Israel. While not much of a fighter or physical specimen, Kochav makes up for it with his intelligence, charisma, and oratorical skills that he uses to remind people that American society wasn't always what it is now, and that it could become something better if only people let go of their anti-intellectual prejudice and embrace critical thinking once more. Truly he is one of the greatest champions of the resistance to both the Identity Politic and the far-right terrorist groups. * '''Mary Alice Scofield: '''A member of an underground resistance movement trying to smuggle people out of the United States and to the safety of either Canada or Europe. Mary was originally a normal American woman, before her choosing to live as a housewife and a stay-at-home mom got her the ire of the Identity Politic. Judging her husband to have been a bad influence on her and "corrupting" her (even though it had been entirely her own choice), the government took him from her, and she hasn't seen him since. From then to now, Mary has been secretly trying to get people out of the country, and has already smuggled her son out to Wales. She hopes to one day see him again, but she knows it's a faint hope. * '''The Hustler: ' * 'Remy "The Weasel" Carter: '''A sneak and a cheat whose spent most of his life in and out of prisons, Remy can't be trusted for much, but what he ''can be trusted to do, apart from switch sides the moment its convenient, is get people contraband. Be it weapons, ammunition, food, or even censored and banned items. Odds are, Remy can get it. Some things may take more effort than other things, but on the whole, he's good at what he does. Many people who fight against the Identity Politic make use of him, but this does unfortunately include reactionary groups as well as those possessed of a stronger moral character. * '''Phillip Woods: '''A descendant of the infamous James Woods, Phillip Woods embodies everything that is wrong with the primary resistance to the Identity Politic; a self-righteous, willfully ignorant spreader of ultra-conservative ideology (including virulently racist conspiracy theories), Phillip uses his unsanctioned radio broadcasts to stoke the flames of racist resentment. Rather than encourage a responsible middle-ground or urge people of all backgrounds to come together and fight a tyrannical government, Woods instead uses the Identity Politic's actions as an excuse to encourage racist, misogynistic, and homophobic rhetoric (among other prejudices). Always angry, always complaining about liberalism, and always, always without a drop of human decency in him, Phillip Woods won't be satisfied until the cruelty of the Identity Politic is replaced with something just as bad or worse; the cruelty of a world that's just as reactionary as he is. * '''Clio Liefeld: '''The tyrannical, fascist leader of the Identity Politic government. Not much is definitively known about her history due to the heavy censorship and alteration of history even within the government itself. It is clear that Liefeld has gone out of her way to erase as much of her past from the public record as possible. Rumors go that she was brought up religious, which is part of why she tries to erase her history. As the current dictator of the Identity Politic, she rules the country with an iron fist and is consumed by the beliefs of the Identity Politic to an even greater extreme than the norm; thin-skinned to the point of erraticism and absurdity, Clio Liefeld has been known to personally shoot and kill men for uttering even a single word in her presence on the grounds that the entire English language is inherently oppressive and therefore any word spoken by men is too terrible to be endured. Any disagreement with her results in her screaming her head off and flying into a self-righteous rage about how her way is the moral way and anyone who disagrees with anything she says is an enemy. For this reason, her subordinates have learned to give her a wide berth, and prefer to not communicate with her in person if at all possible. In private, many of them question her sanity (to do so out loud would mean a prolonged death for the suggester). Haughty, paranoid, sanctimonious, controlling, obsessed with censorship, and utterly intolerant to the core, Clio Liefeld embodies all that is ugly and wrong with the Identity Politic. Trivia * The Earth's number is not just a reference to the year it takes place, but also the novel ''1984 ''by George Orwell, which likewise takes place in a dystopian future. Category:Realities Category:Lore Category:Dystopian Earths Category:Superhero Earths Category:World War II Earths